Code:  IIBGA

Revised/Readopted:  2/26/18, 11/28/23

Adopted:  4/27/15

Orig. Code(s):  IIBGA

The Board is committed to the development and establishment of a quality, equitable and cost-effective electronic communications system.  The system’s sole purpose shall be for the advancement and promotion of learning and teaching.

The district’s electronic communications system will be used to provide communications opportunities for staff and students and the advancement and promotion of teaching and learning.

The superintendent will establish administrative regulations for use of the district’s electronic communication system including compliance with the following provisions of the Children’s Internet Protection Act:

1. Technology protection measures, installed and in continuous operation, that protect against internet access by both adults and minors to visual depictions that are obscene, child pornography or, with respect to the use of the computers by minors, harmful to minors;
2. Educating minors about appropriate online behavior, including cyberbullying awareness and response, and how to interact with other individuals on social media sites and in chat rooms;
3. Monitoring the online activities of minors;
4. Denying access by minors to inappropriate matter on the internet and online;
5. Ensuring the safety and security of minors when using email, social media, chat rooms and other forms of direct electronic communications;
6. Prohibiting unauthorized access, including hacking and other unlawful activities by minors online;
7. Prohibiting unauthorized disclosure, use and dissemination of personal information regarding minors; and
8. Installing measures designed to restrict minors’ access to materials harmful to minors.

The administrative regulations shall insure compliance with privacy rights under applicable federal and state laws and regulations, including but not limited to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 (GINA) and the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA).

The administrative regulations will be consistent with sound guidelines as may be provided by the education service district, the Oregon Department of Education and/or the Oregon Government Ethics Commission and will include a complaint procedure for reporting violations.

The superintendent will also establish administrative regulations for use of the district’s electronic communications system to comply with copyright law.

Failure to abide by district policy and administrative regulations governing use of the district’s electronic communications system may result in the suspension and/or revocation of system access.  Additionally, student violations may result in discipline up to and including expulsion.  Staff violations may also result in discipline up to and including dismissal.  Violations of law may be reported to law enforcement officials and may result in criminal or civil sanctions.  Fees, fines or other charges may also be imposed.

END OF POLICY

                                                                                                                                                                           

Legal Reference(s):

ORS 167.060 to -167.100
ORS Chapter 192
ORS 260.432
ORS 332.107
ORS 339.250
ORS 339.270
OAR 581-021-0050
OAR 581-021-0055
OAR 584-020-0040
OAR 584-020-0041

Children’s Internet Protection Act, 47 U.S.C.§§ 254(h) and (l) (2018); 47 C.F.R. Section 54.520 (2019).
Copyrights, 17, U.S.C. §§ 101-1332 (2018); 19 C.F.R. Part 133 (2020).
Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act, 20 U.S.C.§§ 7101-7117 (2018).
Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988, 41 U.S.C.§§ 8101-8107 (2018); 34 C.F.R. Part 84, Subpart F (2020).
Controlled Substances Act, 21 U.S.C.§ 812, Schedules I through V (2018) 21 C.F.R. §§ 1308.11-1308.15 (2020).
Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, 42 U.S.C.§§ 12101-12213 (2018); 29 C.F.R. Part 1630 (2020); 28 C.F.R. Part 35 (2020).
Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, 20 U.S.C.§ 1232g (2018); 34 C.F.R. Part 99 (2018).
Every Student Succeeds Act, 20 U.S.C. § 7131 (2018).
Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act of 2008, 42 U.S.C. §§ 12101-12133 (2018).

Code:  IIBGA-AR

Readopted:  3/5/24

Adopted:  10/10/95

 

Definitions

1. “Technology protection measure,” as defined by the Children’s Internet Protection Act (CIPA), means a specific technology that blocks or filters internet access to visual depictions that are:
   1. Obscene, as that term is defined in Section 1460 of Title 18, United States Code;
   2. Child pornography, as that term is defined in Section 2256 of Title 18, United States Code; or
   3. Harmful to minors.
2. “Harmful to minors,” as defined by CIPA, means any picture, image, graphic image file or other visual depiction that:
   1. Taken as a whole and with respect to minors, appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex or excretion;
   2. Depicts, describes or represents, in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; and
   3. Taken as a whole, lacks serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value to minors.
3. “Sexual act and sexual contact,” as defined by CIPA, have the meanings given such terms in Section 2246 of Title 18, United States Code.
4.  “Minor,” as defined by CIPA, means an individual who has not attained the age of 17.  For the purposes of Board policy and this administrative regulation, minor will include all students enrolled in district schools.
5. “Inappropriate matter,” as defined by the district, means material that is inconsistent with general public education purposes and the district’s vision, mission and goals, as determined by the district.^[1]
6. “District proprietary information” is defined as any information created, produced or collected by district staff for the business or education purposes of the district including but not limited to student information, staff information, parent or patron information, curriculum, forms and like items used to conduct the district’s business.
7. “District software” is defined as any commercial or staff developed software acquired using district resources.
8. “Incidental Personal use” is defined as:
   1. Occasional use for personal purposes;
   2. Of minimal time and duration;
   3. Results in no additional financial costs to the school district; and
   4. Results in no financial gain for the user.

Incidental Personal Use must not interfere with assigned job responsibilities or be in violation of existing security or access rules.

General District Responsibilities

The district will:

1. Designate staff as necessary to ensure coordination and maintenance of the district’s electronic communications system which includes all district computers, devices, software applications, e-mail and Internet access;
2. Provide staff training in the appropriate use of the district’s electronic communications system including copies of district policy and administrative regulations.  Staff will provide similar training to authorized system users;
3. Provide a system for authorizing staff use of personal electronic devices to access district proprietary information that ensures the protections of said information in accordance with board policy. The district will provide a system for obtaining prior written agreement from staff for the recovery of district proprietary information downloaded to staff personal electronic devices as necessary to accomplish district purposes, obligations or duties, and when the use of the personal electronic device is no longer authorized, to ensure verification that information downloaded has been properly removed from the personal electronic device; (See Staff User Agreement)
4. Cooperate fully with local, state or federal officials in any investigation relating to misuse of the district’s electronic communications system;
5. Use only properly licensed software, audio or video media purchased by the district or approved for use by the district.  The district will comply with the requirements of law regarding the use, reproduction and distribution of copyrighted works and with applicable provisions of use or license agreements.
6. Install and use server virus detection and removal software. 
7. Provide technology protection measures that protect against Internet access by both adults and minors to visual depictions that are obscene, child pornography, or with respect to the use of computers by minors, harmful to minors. A supervisor or other individual authorized by the superintendent or designee may disable the technology protection measures to enable access for bona fide research or other lawful purposes, as deemed appropriate; 
8. Prohibit access by minors to inappropriate matter on the internet; 
9. Provide staff supervision to monitor the online activities of students to prevent unauthorized access, including “hacking” and other unlawful activities online, and ensure the safety and security of minors when authorized to use e-mail, social media, chat rooms, applications, and other forms of direct electronic communication;
10. Provide student education about appropriate online behavior, including cyberbullying awareness and response, and how to interact with other individuals on social networking and social media websites, applications, and in chat rooms;
11. Determine which users and sites accessible as part of the district’s electronic communications system are most applicable to the curricular needs of the district and may restrict user access, accordingly; 
12. Determine which users will be provided access to the district’s electronic communications systems;
13. Notify appropriate system users that:
    1. The district retains ownership and control of its computers, devices, hardware, software and data at all times.  All communications and stored information transmitted, received or contained in the district’s information system are the district’s property and are to be used for authorized purposes only.  Use of district equipment or software for unauthorized purposes is strictly prohibited.  To maintain system integrity, monitor network etiquette and ensure that those authorized to use the district’s system are in compliance with Board policy, administrative regulations and law, district IT staff and other authorized personnel may routinely review user files and communications;
    2. Files and other information, including e-mail, sent or received, generated or stored on district servers are not private and may be subject to monitoring.  By using the district’s system, individuals consent to have that use monitored by authorized district personnel.  The district reserves the right to access and disclose, as appropriate, all information and data contained on district computers and district-owned e-mail system;
    3. The district may establish a retention schedule for removal of email; 
    4. Email sent or received by a Board member or employee in connection with the transaction of public business may be a public record and subject to state archivist rules for retention and destruction;
    5. Information and data entered or stored on the district’s computers and e-mail system may be subject to disclosure if a public records request is made or a lawsuit is filed against the district.  “Deleted” or “purged” data from district computers or e-mail system may be retrieved for later public records disclosure or disciplinary purposes, as deemed necessary by the district;
    6. The district may set quotas for system disk usage.  
    7. Transmission of any communications or materials related to activities prohibited by ORS 260.432 is not allowed.
14. Ensure all student, staff and nonschool system users complete and sign an agreement to abide by the district’s electronic communications system policy and administrative regulations. All such agreements will be maintained on file in the school office;
15. Notify users of known copyright infringing activities and deny access to or remove the material.

Electronic Communication System Access

1. Access to the district’s electronic communications system is authorized to:
   1. Board members, district employees, and students in grades K-12, with parent approval and when under the district supervision of staff, and district volunteers, district contractors or other members of the public as authorized by the IT administrators consistent with the district’s policy governing use of district equipment and materials;    
   2. Students, staff, Board members, volunteers, district contractors and other members of the public may be permitted to use the district’s system for incidental personal use, in addition to official district business, consistent with Board policy, general use prohibitions/guidelines/etiquette and other applicable provisions of this administrative regulation.  Board member and employee use of district-owned computers may be permitted only when such use does not violate the provisions of ORS 244.040 and use is under the same terms and conditions that access is provided to the general public under the district’s policy governing use of district equipment and materials.

General Use Prohibitions and Guidelines/Etiquette

Operation of the district’s electronic communications system relies upon the proper conduct and appropriate use of system users.  Students, staff and others granted system access are responsible for adhering to the following prohibitions and guidelines which require legal, ethical and efficient use of the district’s system.

1. General Use Prohibitions. The following conduct is strictly prohibited:
   1. Attempts to use the district’s electronic communications system for:

(1)    Unauthorized solicitation of funds;
(2)    Distribution of chain letters;
(3)    Unauthorized sale or purchase of merchandise and services;
(4)    Collection of signatures;
(5)    Membership drives;
(6)    Transmission of any materials regarding political campaigns.

2.  Attempts to upload, download, use, reproduce or distribute information, data, software, or file share music, videos or other materials on the district’s system in violation of copyright law or applicable provisions of use or license agreements;
3. Attempts to degrade, disrupt or vandalize the district’s equipment, software, materials or data or those of any other user of the district’s system or any of the agencies or other networks connected to the district’s system;
4. Attempts to evade, change or exceed resource quotas or data usage quotas;
5. Attempts to send, intentionally access or download any text file or picture or engage in any communication that includes, but not limited to material which may be interpreted as:

(1)    Harmful to minors;
(2)    Obscene or child pornography as defined by law or indecent, vulgar, profane or lewd as determined by the district;
(3)    A product or service not permitted to minors by law;
(4)    Harassment, intimidation, bullying, menacing, threatening, or a bias incident;  
(5)    Constitutes insulting or fighting words, the very expression of which injures or harasses others, or which includes a symbol of hate;
(6)    A likelihood that, either because of its content or the manner of distribution, it will cause a material or substantial disruption of the proper and orderly operation of the district, school or school activity;
(7)    Defamatory, libelous, reckless or maliciously false, potentially giving rise to civil liability, constituting or promoting discrimination, a criminal offense or otherwise violates any law, rule, regulation, Board policy and/or administrative regulation.

6. Attempts to gain unauthorized access to any service via the district’s system which has a cost involved or attempts to incur other types of costs without specific approval.  The user accessing such services will be responsible for these costs;
7. Attempts to post or publish personal student contact information unless consistent with applicable Board policies JOA and JOB pertaining to student directory information and personally identifiable information. 
8. Attempts to represent self on behalf of the district through use of the district’s name in external communication forums, e.g. social media, chat rooms, without prior district authorization;
9. Attempts to use another individual’s account name or password, failure to provide the district with individual passwords or to access restricted information, resources or networks to which the user has not been granted access.

 

2. Guidelines/Etiquette

System users will:

1. Adhere to the same standards for communicating online that are expected in the classroom and consistent with Board policy and administrative regulations;
2. Take pride in communications.  Check spelling and grammar;
3. Respect the privacy of others.  Do not read the mail or files of others without their permission;
4. Cite all quotes, references and sources;
5. Protect password confidentiality.  Passphrases are the property of the district and are not to be shared with others.
6. Communicate only with such users and/or sites as may be authorized by the district;
7. Be forgiving of the mistakes of others and share your knowledge. Practice good mentoring techniques; 
8. Report violations of the district’s policy and administrative regulation or security problems to the supervising teacher, system coordinator or administrator, as appropriate
9. Comply with IT procedures and guidelines posted on the staff intranet.

Complaints
The district’s established complaint procedure will be used for complaints concerning violations of the district’s Electronic Communications System policy and/or administrative regulation.  See Board policy KL – Public Complaints and KL-AR.

Violations/Consequences

1. Students
   1. Students who violate general system user prohibitions shall be subject to discipline as detailed in the Student and Family Handbook.
   2. Violations of law may be reported to law enforcement officials and may result in criminal or civil sanctions.
2. Staff
   1. Staff who violate general system user prohibitions shall be subject to discipline as detailed in the Code of Professional Conduct.
   2. Violations of law may be reported to law enforcement officials and may result in criminal or civil sanctions.
   3. Violations of applicable Teacher Standards and Practices Commission (TSPC), Standards for Competent and Ethical Performance of Oregon Educators will be reported to TSPC as provided by OAR 584-020-0041.
   4. Violations of ORS 244-040 may be reported to the Oregon Government Ethics Commission (OGEC).
3. Others
   1. Other guest users who violate general electronic communications system user prohibitions shall be subject to suspension of system access up to and including permanent revocation of privileges.
   2. Violations of law may be reported to law enforcement officials or other agencies, as appropriate, and may result in criminal or civil sanctions.

Telephone/Membership/Other Charges

1. The district assumes no responsibility or liability for any membership, phone or internet service and/or related charges incurred by any home usage of the district’s electronic communications system.
2. Any disputes or problems resulting from phone services or internet provider services for home users of the district’s electronic communications system are strictly between the system user and their internet service provider and/or phone service provider.

Information Content/Third Party Supplied Information

1. System users and parents of student system users are advised that use of the district’s electronic communication system may provide access to materials that may be considered objectionable and inconsistent with the district’s vision, mission and goals.  Parents should be aware of the existence of such materials and monitor their student’s home usage of the district’s electronic communication system accordingly.
2. Opinions, advice, services and all other information expressed by system users, information providers, service providers or other third-party individuals are those of the providers and not the district.
3. Users of the electronic communications system may, with supervising teacher or system coordinator approval, order services or merchandise from other vendors that may be accessed through the district’s electronic communication system.  These vendors are not affiliated with the district.  All matters concerning merchandise and services ordered including, but not limited to, purchase terms, payment terms, warranties, guarantees and delivery are solely between the vendor and the electronic communications system user.  The district makes no warranties or representation whatsoever with regard to any goods or services provided by the vendor.  District staff and administration shall not be a party to any such transaction or be liable for any costs or damages arising out of, either directly or indirectly, the actions or inactions of  vendors.
4. The district does not warrant that the functions or services performed by or that the information or software contained on the electronic communications system will meet the system user’s requirements or that the electronic communications system will be uninterrupted or error-free or that defects will be corrected.  The district’s electronic communications system is provided on an “as is, as available” basis.  The district does not make any warranties, whether express or implied including, without limitation, those of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose with respect to any services provided by the electronic communications system and any information or software contained therein.

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^[1] As inappropriate matter is not defined in the CIPA or regulations, districts should define the scope of what it will regard as inappropriate matter.  The language provided in #5 is intended as a guide only.